Key Takeaways
- Sales force automation (SFA) is a function that automates various sales processes using software tools.
- SFA is not the same as a CRM system, which supports sales and marketing efforts to track buyer journeys and identify revenue opportunities.
- The benefits of SFA technology include increased accuracy, better use of sales team time, no forgotten leads, smart sales forecasts, employee engagement and retention, reduced cost of workforce resources, and quick responses.
Sales teams are always looking for ways to improve their processes and close more deals. One solution that has gained popularity in recent years is sales force automation (SFA) technology. SFA is a function that automates various sales processes, saving time and increasing accuracy. It can be part of a CRM system or a separate tool designed to automate select sales tasks.
In this article, we will cover the basics of SFA, its benefits, the sales activities you should automate, and the types of sales automation tools to consider.
Understanding Sales Force Automation
SFA technology allows sales teams to automate tasks that were previously performed manually. This not only saves time, but it also increases accuracy and reduces the chance of errors. It also allows salespeople to focus on more essential parts of their job, such as engaging with leads and closing deals.
SFA and CRM are not the same thing. While a CRM supports sales and marketing efforts to track buyer journeys, identify revenue opportunities, and provide customer support, an SFA tool or feature in a CRM is strictly used to automate tasks. SFA technology can be part of a CRM system or a separate tool designed to automate select sales tasks.
Benefits of Sales Force Automation
Sales force automation technology has many benefits that can boost your bottom line. Here are some of the key benefits of SFA:
- Increased accuracy: The more times you perform a task, the more opportunities you have to make a mistake. Automating repetitive tasks reduces the chance of errors.
- Better use of sales team time: By automating mundane tasks, sales teams can focus on more essential parts of their job, such as engaging with leads and closing deals.
- No forgotten leads: Leads can fall through the cracks when they are being tracked manually with spreadsheets, calendars, or anything other than a CRM or SFA tool. SFA helps ensure all your leads are accounted for.
- Smart sales forecasts: Smart sales forecasting analyzes past sales records, checks the current sales database, and provides insight into upcoming opportunities. SFA enables you to get better leads from your existing customers by analyzing their past sales patterns and generating custom campaigns.
- Employee engagement and retention: Salespeople often feel more productive with SFA, which contributes to job satisfaction.
- Reduced cost of workforce resources: Automating and streamlining repetitive tasks saves sales reps time and, as a result, reduces overhead.
- Quick responses: With SFA, leads can be contacted instantly, ensuring that they don’t lose interest in your company while waiting for a response.
Sales Activities to Automate
If an automation tool can do a task just as well as or better than a human could do the task manually, you should automate the task. Here are some of the sales activities that SFA technology can automate:
- Lead nurture emails with workflows
- Data entry such as product name and price (with autofill)
- Reports
- Research on leads (auto-population of lead contact information from directories)
- Lead prioritization
- Voicemails
- Call logging
- Appointment scheduling
- Call routing to the right sales reps
- Calculations of the cost of acquiring new customers
Sales Automation Tools to Consider
With dozens of SFA tools on the market, how do you choose one that’s ideal for your company? The best way to determine which solution is suitable for your business is to learn as much about each tool as you can. When possible, schedule demos and take advantage of free trials. Here are some popular SFA tools worth considering:
- HubSpot: HubSpot is an all-in-one CRM and SFA tool that enables you to track the status of your leads, use workflows to automate lead rotation or send sequence emails, streamline follow-ups, and more.
- SendGrid: This communications platform can send transactional and marketing emails automatically. You can set automation triggers to send prospects personalized emails.
- Alfred: This all-in-one Twitter, LinkedIn, and email automation platform promises to be simple to use, safe, reliable, and a timesaver for sales teams. You can use it to create multiple campaign sequences and engage prospects with connection requests, messages, profile views, and more.
- ConvertKit: With ConvertKit, you can build a path for your subscribers by sending them through more than one workflow at a time. You can also utilize visual automations and logic to determine the path your subscribers take.
- Leadfeeder: Learn which visitors go to your website and what they look at when they do. With Leadfeeder, you can also get email notifications when your target clients visit your website. When a lead revisits your website, Leadfeeder will automatically update your CRM with that information.
- Leadiro: Leadiro is a B2B customer data platform that’s best for automated lead generation, providing a regular source of qualified leads. You can filter the tool’s data for various metrics and see how to target leads that are relevant to your business.
- Slack: Recently acquired by Salesforce, Slack routes communications to the right sales team members through automated forms, messages, and more.
Conclusion
Sales force automation technology can improve your sales team’s ability to engage with new leads and boost customer satisfaction. With its benefits, such as increased accuracy, better use of sales team time, no forgotten leads, smart sales forecasts, employee engagement and retention, reduced cost of workforce resources, and quick responses, SFA is becoming increasingly popular among sales teams. If you’re considering SFA technology, it’s essential to evaluate your business’s specific needs and budget and research the available tools to determine which one is right for you.
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